


Sweetest Devotion

by apostapal, Kaiperion



Series: Destinywatch AU [1]
Category: Destiny (Video Games), Overwatch (Video Game)
Genre: Canon-Typical Death/Resurrection, Canon-Typical Violence, F/M, Friends With Benefits, Grief/Mourning, Intense Mom Feels, It Takes a Village to Raise a Child, Resurrection, Single Parents, Temporary Character Death, Unplanned Pregnancy
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-10-25
Updated: 2018-10-25
Packaged: 2019-08-01 05:13:36
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,348
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16278392
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/apostapal/pseuds/apostapal, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kaiperion/pseuds/Kaiperion
Summary: Carmen Reyes: One of the oldest Guardians still around. Risen of the first wave before Guardians even were. An Iron Lord. A Gunslinger. A Hunter. (A reckless idiot if you asked Saladin but they all were at one point or another really.)Carmen was many things to many people but one thing she never expected to be was a mother. Never thought it was possible as a Guardian but Light and life find a way to leave little surprises that quickly become the most important things in life. Something to fight for. Something to die for. Something to mourn the loss of with all the grief that could be held over several lifetimes. Living forever with a child who can't makes every moment precious and every memory as important as the last.It is far too easy to take them for granted when time moves so fast.And Carmen knows just how fast it goes.[Just a few flashbacks to herald my destinywatch au. Set in the POV of Gabriel's mother and her recollections of his human life before becoming a Guardian. I promise this series will have more Overwatch characters as things progress.]





	Sweetest Devotion

> **_April 4th, 2455_ **
> 
> **_10 miles outside the Last City_ **

It was raining.

Figuratively and literally.

The sun was nowhere to be seen and it didn’t look like it would be coming out anytime soon. Not now. Not ever. Effectively extinguished.

It didn’t matter anyway. Not anymore at least.

The soft pitter-patter of the raindrops sounded through the trees on the outskirts of the forest surrounding the Last City. Wind pushed through the leaves and knocked loose the remnants of pine needles from their hibernating hosts showering a conglomeration of loosely structured tents and militant huts clearly organized for offensive purposes.

Some of them were completely destroyed. Others were barely staying upright. Fire crackled in random patches, burning blue banners with almost primitive scrawlings. And beneath all this were hundreds of bodies. Bipedal, four-armed creatures laying in puddles of blood, some of them charred and ashen.

And standing over them, a lone figure; a Hunter; a Guardian, observing the carnage with a passive eye, Golden Gun at her side still smoking and radiating that orange solar energy.

As she observed, an acute anger spiked through her. She thought perhaps this would give her some closure. It was _supposed_ to give her closure and yet she felt just as bereft as before. Cold. Aching. _Empty_.

All these scattered and felled Fallen and there was no shred of coming to terms with anything. It still hurt. It still hurt and it wasn’t fair. _It wasn’t fucking fair._

A small mechanical figure, a Ghost by the name of Merak, appeared over her shoulder looking worried despite not having any facial features to speak of.

“Carmen?” It prompted hesitantly, lightly saying the name in the hopes of calming the other.

Instead of responding, a frustrated growl escaped the Guardian and she unloaded another round on the Fallen Kell at her feet until her Light simmered and dissipated and the Golden Gun disappeared from her grip. She replaced it with her physical hand cannon with a huff as Merak watched the Kell disintegrate.

Tears left streaks on her face, hidden beneath her helmet and impossible to wipe away, burning saline trails into her cheeks. She wasn’t sure that they would ever stop coming and she wasn’t sure she wanted them to either, as though stopping would be accepting the situation. At least for now, accepting was not on the menu. Just this raw anger and pulsing pain in her chest.

Looking up she could see the City through a break in the trees, rising like a fortress with pristine walls protecting those within.

Well… as long as they _stayed_ within them.

As the wind whipped angrily and the storm kicked up with an icy chill, she felt a wave of recollection wash over her. Her mind had been made up for 3 days already but this was a scene she’d been a part of before, though for a much different reason.

A deep breath in. Not calming, but centering. Focusing. And then out again as she let the memory take her.

 

* * *

>    ** _September 13th, 2423_**
> 
> **_On patrol outside the Iron Temple_ **

“You’re getting better at this.”

Merak chimed just on the verge of condescending with the genuine surprised pride in his voice, springing up beside her as she emptied the contents of her stomach into a bush for the sixth time that morning.

Carmen wiped her mouth and sighed, resting her arms against her knees as she sat to catch her breath, careful to avoid the Fallen bodies around her. “Which part?” She asked, “The throwing up or the fighting?”

“Well considering you’ve managed to go this long without dying, I’ll say the latter.”

She snorted at that. “Is this some sort of Guardian thing I’m unaware of? All this puking? I don’t think I’ve even eaten this much to be throwing it all up like this...”

Merak’s shell shuttered and twisted, betraying his hesitance before he finally answered, “I would say this is a purely human thing.”

She blinked at him, the action useless behind her helmet. A brisk wind had picked up bringing with it the first hints of fall and the change of the season. Normally it always brought some kind of transformation. She was curious if what Merak was trying to say would bring about a new one. “What do you mean?”

His shell twisted again and he floated closer for a moment, scanning her. She held still for him which was rare in itself and waited patiently until he stopped and looked up at her for a long moment.

Clearing a throat he didn’t have, he began to float around aimlessly as he spoke, “You’ve been more tired lately. Hungry a lot more. Complained of cramps a few times.” He circled around her head and she tried to track his movement but her head only turned so far, “You almost fell off the balcony of the Temple because you got dizzy,” he reappeared back in front of her and looked pointedly at her as though all of these facts hinted at something she should have picked up on by now, “and for the last five days you’ve vomited at least twice every morning without fail…”

Carmen blinked at him for a moment, mind blissfully silent before it started firing randomly, connecting the dots quickly and surprising her with its revelation as much as it excited and terrified her.

“I’m…” She cleared her throat and looked down at her stomach, gently touching the area with a gloved hand.

“Pregnant.” Merak completed for her. “About two months along actually.”

A million thoughts bombarded her at once. The normal questions like how and when and why and _what_. And then other questions like ‘has this ever happened before’ and ‘does it also get resurrected’ and ‘will it automatically be a Guardian’.

Merak, helpfully connected to her thoughts through their bond provided the answers.

“This happens with Guardians all the time. But unlike now, most Guardians end up dying and being revived which, unfortunately, does not also revive the little one since it’s just a normal human without a ghost. You’re not undead, Carmen. Your body still works as well, if not better than it did when it was alive. So you not dying at all for the last couple months has allowed it to make itself known, so-to-speak.”

She stared at her stomach a moment longer. “So you’re saying if I die while pregnant, I’ll kill it?”

“Yes.”

With a heavy sigh, Carmen stood and patted her belly affectionately, “Well that settles it then.”

Merak’s shell twisted curiously, “You’re going to keep it?”

“Yeah. Yeah I want to.” It was going to be tough but she couldn’t deny the protective feeling that grabbed her by the heart.

“How will you keep yourself from dying for nine months?”

A valid question. “By being very careful.” She turned to look up at the Iron Temple, “Starting with leaving this place.”

“They probably won’t be very fond of you abandoning your duties. Not when they’re so close to SIVA.”

“Well they can get fucked.” She placed her hands on her hips, “My body, my rules.”

Merak was silent for a moment as Carmen stared at the Temple, contemplative. Then, “Will you tell Saladin?”

“Oh. Ugh. Yikes. No thanks. Not right now.”

“Very well.” the Ghost floated in front of her, “I suggest, if you’re serious about taking care of yourself for this baby, that you get started walking to the city to talk to a doctor about what you need.”

She beamed at him, “Good idea, buddy.” then cast one last look at the Iron Temple over her shoulder, the stone columns built into the mountainside making it impenetrable.

They’d be fine without her, of that she was certain. A small absence shouldn’t ruffle too many feathers or even Radegast’s furs. Everything would be fine, she just needed to lay low for awhile. Surely they’d understand that much.

And as she turned away, she couldn’t help but feel she was starting the most important journey of her very, very long life. However long it might last.

**Author's Note:**

> Carmen is 100% apostapal's brain baby and I just threw her into my destinywatch au (with permission) but of course I fell IN LOVE with her and had to flesh out more of her story which meant fleshing out more of Gabriel's story. This whole thing is just a product of my love for this mother-son relationship and basically I blame Fly for everything.
> 
> This fic was named after [this song](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b-MQNDmw9p8) by Adele. I recommend you give it a listen!
> 
> Thanks for reading!
> 
> Love it? Hate it? Please let me know!!
> 
> You can find me [here](http://kaiperion.tumblr.com) and please send [Fly](http://blackwatchbastard.tumblr.com/) your love for Carmen!


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